Paul McCartney Ram

Ram

January, 24 2014 | Elliott Street Deli & Pub

This event is for patrons 21 and up only.

Sir Paul McCartney, known first and foremost for his role as a knight by those obsessed with British nobility, was also a member of a band called the Beatles as the other 99.9% of the world knows. When the band broke up—a bit like the disbanding of the Knights of the Round Table, perhaps—Paul set out on his own. He did okay for himself, so don’t feel too bad. Ultimately he formed the band Wings. But before doing so, he released two albums on his own. On Friday Jan 24th at Elliott St Pub: the ATL Collective is back to present the second of those two releases: Paul and Linda McCartney’s Ram.

You know the animal (or maybe you don’t), but now you can get to know the album. We’ve called on one of Atlanta’s finest musicians (and animal lovers) Robby Handley to curate. Yes, the man normally behind the bass is taking the, well, the ram by the horns. He’s brought in a lineup to which most other lineups should bow down. Who you ask? Hang on, we’re just about to tell you: Adron, Lera Lynn, Cicada Rhythm and Sleepy Guest.

Released on May 17, 1971, this album was a big deal. Some see it as the first indie pop album ever made. Like a lot of indie art, it was panned by most critics, of course in this case it was potentially because most critics were still in mourning and shock from the breakup of the band. John Lennon saw several songs as attacks on him, and if you parse the lyrics you can find evidence of that (some which Paul admits, some which he denies). Lennon admitted to hating the album, saying it was “muzak to my ears” and said he didn’t “think there’s one good tune on [it].”

We disagree. And on Friday January 24th, you can decide for yourself what Paul was up to and whether it was a success. You can consider what the album tells us about who he was in the Beatles and who he was without the Beatles. Or you can abandon thinking like a music nerd and just dig the music, for it’s really, really good. And in the hands of Robby Handley and the gang, you’re going to become a Ram lover, if you weren’t already.